The rumors were right, Electronic Arts is returning to Steam with its massive catalog of titles that have been Origin exclusive on PC since 2011. EA announced today that the beginning of this return has Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order, the Respawn Entertainment-developed action game, releasing on Steam alongside other platforms on November 15.
Meanwhile, the company"s subscription program, EA Access, will also be offered via Steam starting next spring. Note that this is EA Access, not Origin Access, meaning it will only provide subscribers with EA-published games on Steam and discounts for items from the publisher. The service has been a console product until now, available on the Xbox One and, more recently, PlayStation 4.
Both EA and Valve heads had statements to make regarding this new partnership.
"This is the start of an exciting partnership with Valve that will see us innovating for PC players around the world," said EA CEO Andrew Wilson. "Through our subscription, great games and more, we’re excited to bring players in the Steam and Origin communities together with access to the best games, whenever and wherever they want to play."
Adding to that, Valve"s Gabe Newell said:
"This is a good day for gamers. We’re excited to partner with EA to not only bring their great games and subscription service to Steam, but also to open up our communities to each other in an unprecedented way that will benefit players and developers around the world.”
Star Wars Jedi: Fallen Order pre-orders are already available on Steam for those interested. Following this, EA plans to introduce other games from its portfolio such as Apex Legends, The Sims 4, Battlefield V, Unravel 2, FIFA 20, and more onto Steam sometime in 2020. There"s cross-play between the two platforms as well, with both Steam and Origin communities playing on the same servers.